Missing tortoise found, didn't get far

NEW CASTLE, Del., Sept. 14 (UPI) -- A missing African sulcata tortoise turned up blocks from the New Castle County, Del., aquarium shop where it has been a fixture for 16 years, its owner said.

Investigators initially said they believed the 50-pound tortoise, named Roger, was stolen Friday afternoon, The News Journal of New Castle reported. Billy Williams, owner of the Greenbank Aquarium, learned of its loss when he returned from a Florida vacation.

As it turned out, the tortoise apparently wandered off and hadn't gone far when Monica Sandelier, 19, found it Tuesday near her home, the newspaper said.

"It just caught my attention," she said. "It was slowly moving toward the street. It looked like a big rock."

Williams said the tortoise was a baby no bigger than a tennis ball when he acquired it. Roger is allowed to roam the store and knows how to open the front door.

"He uses his right leg to open the front door and pushed it open like a Sherman tank," he said. "He's very fast for a big turtle. And he's very social. He's got a great personality for a turtle."